Homemade Marshmallow Crème and a BOOK GIVEAWAY!

If you think that a marshmallow is one of those semi-stale, crackly, crusty things you get at the supermarket, then we need to have a talk. Ideally, they should be squishy and soft, not tough and dense….and oh-so importantly, they should taste fresh. You don’t have to buy them, you know…the marshmallow ideal can be your reality if you make them at home. It is sticky business, to be sure, but it isn’t that hard. And there’s a whole, sweet new book, Marshmallow Madness! by fellow blogger Shauna Server, to help you out. It has a puffy cover and everything! It starts with the classics…vanilla, chocolate…and moves on to some really inspired flavors like buttered rum and maple-bacon. Who would have thought marshmallows could be so adult and sophisticated? I’ve already made my caramel sauce for the sea salt caramel swirl ones.

I whipped up a batch of Shauna’s marshmallow crème this morning. It’s marshmallow minus the gelatin, and just like with marshies, if you’ve only ever had store-bought Fluff, you’ll be wowed by the way homemade tastes. Like real vanilla, for one thing. Guess what I’m gonna put this sticky stuff all over tonight?? Minds out of the gutter people, this is a PG blog– I’m talking about chocolate ice cream! And if I have any left next weekend, I’ll turn it into a giant Ho-Ho with the chocolate-marshmallow roulade recipe in the “Fluffy, Puffy Desserts” section at the back of the book.

The nice folks at Quirk Books sent me a copy of this book, and now I want to send a copy to one of you, too. Just leave me a comment (one per person, please) on this post before 4:00 pm EST on Thursday (March 8) and I’ll randomly choose a winner from the list. Be sure your e-mail address is correct so I can contact you!

***Giveaway Winner Update: I now have two copies to give away, one from me and one from Quirk Books, who has very kindly offered to donate another. I used random.org to generate random comment numbers to find the winners. It selected comments 7 and 10, so congratulations to Christy and Anne M. You should be getting your books soon!***

-Stir together the sugar, light corn syrup, water and salt in a small saucepan over high heat. Boil, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 240°F.

-Meanwhile, place the egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Start whipping the egg whites to soft peaks on medium speed. The goal is to have the egg whites whipped and ready, waiting for your syrup to be drizzled in. If they’re whipping faster than your syrup is coming to temperature, just stop the mixer (or turn to lowest speed) until the syrup is ready.

-When the syrup reaches 240°F, set the mixer to low and slowly drizzle a tiny bit of syrup, a couple tablespoons’ worth, into the egg whites to warm them. (If you add too much syrup at once, the whites will scramble). Slowly drizzle in the rest of they syrup and then increase the speed to medium-high. Beat until the marshmallow crème is stiff and glossy, 7-9 minutes; towards the end of the beating, beat in the vanilla.

-Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Please note that the publisher, Quirk Books, sent me a copy of this book.

There are some great things that marshmallow makes and can be combined with. I know right off the bat I love s’mores with homemade marshmallow but I love the combination of chocolate caramel and marshmallow.

What a fun giveaway! I didn’t know much about marshmallow fluff until I moved to New England (where they used to serve Fluffernutter sandwiches in school cafeterias, according to my husband). I’d love to try to make my own Fluff.

This is no doubt a stupid question, but… What does one do with marshmallow creme (other than eat it from the jar and will it not to go straight to one’s thighs 🙂
Would you use it to frost a cake or perhaps as a dessert (with fruit to dip)?
Looks beautiful, though!

You can use it to frost a cake or fill whoopie pies or sandwich cookies (you’d have to beat butter into it first though, because it’s too sticky as-is to frost with). Also it’s often used as a sundae topping or for PB&Fluff sandwiches (called Fluffernutter!). There are lots of fudge recipes that call for it, too.

I am obviously a deprived person, having never, ever eaten marshmallow fluff/creme!! It looks so darn yummy tho’! Will have to make up for years of lack by making this homemade version! Thanks for posting! 🙂 Susan